ORHS playoff comes to an end

Published 6:00 pm, Thursday, February 26, 2004

Statistics speak for themselves, so with 13 fouls in the first quarter and a whopping 22 in the first half, both teams had to adjust lineups to keep key players from permanently sitting on the bench.

"It was pretty upsetting," said Oak Ridge head coach Rob Stewart, in regards to the obnoxious number of fouls. "We really never got into it. It's hard to run plays when they keep breaking you down."

Don Koetting and Jonathan Lewis each had a lay up in the first frame, as Brenham took a 10-4 lead to close it out. The Cubs dominated the clock, courtesy of numerous Oak Ridge turnovers, but converted only 4-of-13 shots from the field, keeping the War Eagles hopes alive.

The whistles continued to blow in the second, as Brenham was sent to the line twice in the first minute. The Cubs converted two-of-four to go on top 12-4. But the battle was still on as Oak Ridge responded with a bucket from Neal Mabry. Kit Collins then fed the ball to Koetting for a textbook series to slice the lead to 12-8 at the 4:05 mark.

The fouls continued, with Oak Ridge capitalizing off of four straight freebies to close the gap to 15-12. But the Cubs came out of hibernation to score seven unanswered points to take a 22-12 lead into the locker room.

The half changed, but the officiating didn't. Brenham kept the upper hand, outscoring Oak Ridge 11-10 to maintain the lead at 33-22.

Kyle Suchma, realizing the season was hanging by a thread, turned up the heat with a put back and a jumper to open the final period. But the Cubs had the War Eagles right where they wanted them, as they stalled the ball to force the foul. Brenham made the most of things, as they hit 8-of-14 from the free throw line

Lewis and Josh Hubbard fouled out within 30 seconds of each other as Brenham continued to keep themselves at least one step ahead of the game.

Mabry and Kyle Suchma came through in the final period, garnering 12 and seven points respectively in the frame. The duo accounted for all War Eagle points in the fourth, but it wasn't enough as Brenham held on for the 49-41 victory.

The 20 fouls in the second half made for 42 on the night. Brenham hit 14-of-29 for 48 percent, while ORHS hit 10-of-16 for 62 percent.

The Cubs had three double digit players, including J.C. Kimble with 15, Travail Cloud with 13 and Eric Lewis with 10. Lewis pulled down nine boards, followed by Kimble and Cloud with six and five respectively.

For Oak Ridge, Mabry led with 17 points and six rebounds. Suchma had nine points and seven boards, while Lewis chipped in with six points.

Brenham advances to the regional quarterfinals with a 31-3 record. The War Eagles' season comes to a close with a 17-13 record.